OXNARD : 3rd-Grader Gets Top Honors in T-Shirt Contest

He looked a little overwhelmed, but 9-year-old Danny Zubiate bravely answered questions from people who came to the Gullwings Children’s Museum in Oxnard on Tuesday to see his award-winning T-shirt.

“I just looked in a magazine and got some ideas,” Danny said, shrugging at queries during a ceremony to unveil this year’s Strawberry Festival official children’s T-shirt. “Then I cut them out and drew them on a piece of paper.”

Danny’s design was chosen from 620 entries by students in 12 Oxnard elementary schools, said Aileen Stein, a Strawberry Festival spokeswoman.

The shirt is designed with three circles placed in a pyramid shape: The first shows a hand dipping a strawberry into whipped cream, the second circle shows a basket of strawberries and the last one shows a hand holding a strawberry plant.

A section below the circles shows a field of strawberries abloom with the lush, red fruit.

“I just like the way it looked,” Danny said.

To unveil the T-shirt, Strawberry Festival organizers invited about 50 third- and fourth-graders from Rose Avenue School, where Danny attends third grade. Oxnard Mayor Manuel Lopez was also on hand to congratulate Danny.

Danny’s mother, Kelly Zubiate, said the boy’s entire family is proud of his effort. Danny’s father is a graphic artist, and Danny seems to have inherited some of his talent, she said.

“I’ve always been surprised with the depth of talent he’s shown in artwork, ever since he was a little boy,” Zubiate said.

Rose Avenue student Erika Barajas, 8, submitted a design for the T-shirt contest, but lost out to Danny. Still, Erika said, she’s glad she got to go to the ceremony.

“At least we got out of school for the morning,” Erika said.

After the official unveiling, the students were let loose to play inside the Gullwings building, a museum where such hands-on exhibits as a giant bubble-maker encouraged shrieks of delight.

Danny’s T-shirt will be on sale at the Strawberry Festival, which is set for May 21 and 22 in Oxnard, along with the event’s official T-shirt designed by a professional, Stein said.

Shirts with Danny’s design cost $8 in children’s sizes and $10 for adults, officials said.